Collapsible shelving structure or the like



Oct 1962 F. HORANDNER COLLAPSIBLE SHELVING STRUCTURE OR THE LIKE Filed Nov. 4, 1959 5 Shets-$heet 1 MW. 3 N R E m vm r w I% H v rm v Oct. 2, 1962 F. HSRANDNER COLLAPSIBLE SHELVING STRUCTURE OR THE LIKE 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 4, 1959 fir rams/5 rs Oct. 2, 1962 F. H'Q'RANDNER COLLAPSIBLE SHELVING STRUCTURE OR THE LIKE 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed NOV. 4, 1959 IN vixvrok FR/rz Hoke/mum 43 Fla/o W United 3,056,508 Patented Oct. 2, 1962 3,056,508 COLLAPSIBLE SHELVING STRUCTURE OR THE LIKE Fritz Hiirandner, Vienna, Austria, assignor to Oskar Harald Lundqvist, Geneva, Switzerland Filed Nov. 4, 1959, Ser. No. 850,912 Claims priority, application Austria Nov. 12, 1958 2 Claims. (Cl. 211-148) This invention relates to collapsible shelving, and cupboard structures or the like in which the side parts, formed as frames and each comprising two uprights and a plurality of transverse bars, are held together and braced by vertically adjustable shelves projecting into the side parts, and the uprights are provided with preferably removable supports for the shelves. In known shelvings of this kind, the uprights and the shelves are interconnected by teeth, clamping means or struts in order to achieve the required effect. This makes it necessary to provide grooves with various cross-sectional shapes, in each upright; the grooves may be deep or shallow, narrow or wide; this produces deep gaps in the cross-section of the upright in most cases, and reduces the cross-sectional area in all cases, and consequently the external dimensions of the upright have to be made larger. In addition there is the risk that the flanges which the grooves form on the uprights may be broken off, and that in the case of grooves having a triangular cross-sectional shape, the sharp edges of the uprights may be damaged. In many cases the shelves have also to be provided with corresponding re-entrant corners and projecting metal strengthening members, and frequently the projecting metal portions are bent during transport and the uprights are damaged during assembly, or else projecting wooden portions are smashed off. Therefore, attempts have previously been made to protect such wooden portions by bent parts of the metal reinforcements.

This invention seeks to avoid these disadvantages in a simple manner. The invention is based on the idea of anchoring the shelves not directly to the uprights but to the supports, so that the uprights can retain their full cross-sectional area and if the shelves are provided with re-entrant corners these need not be made to fit the crosssectional shape of the uprights exactly. This also makes manufacture substantially cheaper. According to the invention, all of this is achieved by a construction in which the supports are provided with projections extending substantially parallel to the uprights and with at least one step, and the flanks facing the uprights of the portions of the shelves which project into the side parts are provided with recesses which accommodate the projections on the supports and fit these projections.

If the shelves have re-entrant portions the projections of the supports, or the recesses in the shelves flanks, or both the projections and the recesses, may be arranged to produce a tightening action whereby the transversely extending edge of the re-entrant portions of the shelves are pressed each against an upright when the shelves are inserted. If the uprights are provided with one or more rows of holes for accommodating the supports, then in accordance with a further feature of the invention the supports, which may consist of metal section members cut to shape of sheet-metal blanks, or of wire, may each be provided with two pegs insertable into bores disposed one above the other or side by side. If these pegs are to be inserted into bores disposed one above the other, a step is located on a part of the support extending parallel to the uprights.

Embodiments of the invention chosen by way of example are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a shelving constructure in accordance with the invention,

FIGURE 2 is a plan view, partly in section, of the structure shown in FIGURE 1,

FIGURES 3 and 4, 5 and 6, and 7 and 8 are fragmentary perspective views of three further embodiments of shelves and metal reinforcing members, and

FIGURES 9 and 10 show supports for the shelves.

FIGURES 11 to 12 show further ways in which supports may carry shelves; in FIGURE 9, the support carries the shelf shown in FIGURE 3, and in FIGURE 10 the support carries the shelf shown in FIGURE 7.

In FIGURES 1 and 2, the shelving constructed in accordance with the invention comprises a plurality of side parts 1 of which only two are shown in the drawing. Each side part comprises two uprights 2 interconnected by a plurality of transverse bars 3 to form a rigid frame. Each upright is provided with two rows of bores 4 into which supports 5 are inserted. Shelves 6 rest on these supports. In FIGURE 2 the right-hand shelf is provided with re-entrant corners, whereas the left-hand shelf 6 is not.

The shelf 6 is provided with re-entrant corner, so that its narrower portion 10 projects into the side part as far as the central plane of the side part. The end of the shelf is reinforced by a metal angle iron member 11, of which the horizontal flange 12 is sunk into the cross-cut wood of the shelf and secured by means of screws not shown in the drawing, in a known manner. The portion 10 of the shelf which projects into the side part has a flank 13 which faces towards the upright. 2 and is provided with a recess 14 which extends over the whole thickness of the shelf.

FIGURE 9 shows a support consisting of a sheet metal blank 45, two pegs, for insertion into bores 4 disposed one above the other in the upright 2, are welded to the rear side of the blank. FIGURE 10 shows a support made of wire which is curved in such a manner that its free ends can be inserted into bores located side by side or one above the other in the upright 2. A step is formed by the interconnecting part 47 of the bow 48.

As shown in FIGURES 3 and 4 it is advantageous, more particularly if a support as shown in FIGURE 9 is used, to place the recesses 14 in the shelves immediately adjacent to the vertical flange of the metal reinforcement 11, the part of this vertical flange beside the recess 14 is thus pressed against the support projection. This produces better diagonal bracing, as shown in perspective in FIGURE 9 illustrating a shelf supported in this way. As illustrated in FIGURES 7 and 8, the non-slotted part 58 of the horizontal flange 12 of the metal reinforcement 11 may be bent upwards, this forms a prolonged surface of contact between the side of the support projection facing the shelf, and the metal reinforcement 11, and better diagonal bracing is obtained, especially of the shelf is not provided with re-entrant corners. An example of shelves supported in this way is illustrated in perspective in FIGURE 12, a support as shown in FIGURE 10 being used. In FIGURE 12, a shelf without re-entrant corners is used.

As shown in the illustrated embodiments, when the shelf and supports are interconnected in accordance with the invention, the shelving is thereby braced, this has the particular advantage of facilitating assembly.

A particular advantage of the construction in accordance with the invention is that when removable supports are used these supports are secured in position by the inserted shelves, and the supports are prevented from falling out of their seatings in the uprights.

The invention is not restricted to the embodiments illustrated but is defined in the following claims.

What I claim is:

1. A collapsible shelving structure comprising at least two frames including spaced-apart parallel members secured together along the lengths thereof by spaced-apart members secured thereto transversely, a plurality of spaced-apart openings in a surface of each of said members, each of said openings being disposed in a plane substantially transverse to said members, said recesses in each frame member opposing one another and being adapted to receive therein shelf supporting means, at least one shelf adapted to be supported at the sides thereof transversely to said frames to form the structure together with said frames, said shelf having cutouts in the sides thereof, said shelf supporting means including two spaced-apart portions adapted to be inserted in said openings in each of said members and carried thereby, one connecting section between said spacedapart portions having a surface adapted to receive said shelf thereon for carrying said shelf, said shelf having a length selected in accordance with the spacing between transversely separated ones of said connecting sections carried by said members to have said shelf in abutting relation transversely with each of said connecting sections and said cutout sides substantially abutting each of said members to brace the structure transversely when said shelf is carried in said supporting means and forms the structure with said frames, and a member secured to each side of said shelf having a protruding portion forming a slot together with each of said cutout sides, said slot being adapted to receive one of said connecting sections therein in abutting relation, and said protruding portion being adapted to abut said connecting portion for bracing the structure transversely.

2. A collapsible shelving structure as set forth in claim 1, wherein said member includes a protruding portion forming a slot together with said cutout side and a bent arm, said slot being adapted to receive said connecting section therein in abutting relation, and said bent arm being adapted to abut said member for bracing the structure transversely.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,418,435 Gardiner June 6, 1922 2,375,726 Bales May 8, 1945 2,447,704 Kline Aug. 24, 1948 2,732,955 Holmquist Jan. 31, 1956 FOREIGN PATENTS 143,400 Sweden Dec. 22, 1953 169,141 Austria Oct. 10, 1951 696,197 Great Britain Aug. 26, 1953 878,266 France Oct. 5, 1942 1,099,594 France Mar. 23, 1955 

